


Permission Granted

by Stahlop



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Captain Swan January Joy 2020 (Once Upon a Time), F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-23
Updated: 2020-01-23
Packaged: 2021-02-27 08:16:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,297
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22373986
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stahlop/pseuds/Stahlop
Summary: And Emma had been on her share of bad dates: the guy who couldn’t remember her name and kept calling her Enya, the guy that had to pull over before they even made it to the restaurant to puke on the side of the road, the guy that talked about his ex the entire evening and then called said ex numerous times and asked Emma how he could get her back. But Walsh, he was something else entirely.
Relationships: Captain Hook | Killian Jones/Emma Swan
Comments: 12
Kudos: 106





	Permission Granted

**Author's Note:**

> This was inspired by one of those lists you can find on social media. This one dealt with people who thought they were better than someone else , and then were put in their place. When I read this story, I immediately thought of Walsh trying to pull this crap with Emma to impress her.
> 
> Thank you profdanglais for being my beta and helping me get the story back on track.

Emma knew within two minutes that this was going to be a bad date. Emma can’t believe that Ruby, of all people, set her up with the worst guy in the world. Mary Margaret she would have expected it from, but apparently Ruby was in the happy love bubble now that she was dating Liam, and since Mary Margaret and David had their little newborn bundle of joy, Ruby apparently took up the ‘setting up Emma on blind dates’ mantle.

And Emma had been on her share of bad dates: the guy who couldn’t remember her name and kept calling her Enya, the guy that had to pull over before they even made it to the restaurant to puke on the side of the road, the guy that talked about his ex the entire evening and then called said ex numerous times and asked Emma how he could get her back. But Walsh, he was something else entirely.

Emma had learned her lesson about blind dates picking her up. She always met them where the date was going to happen, that way she had her own mode of transportation to get out if the date went sour. The restaurant Walsh wanted to meet at was a pretty swanky place, and happened to be a five minute walk from her apartment. Emma wore a cute pair of black wedge booties with her dress instead of heels since she would be walking. Walsh frowned about the shoes right off the bat. He didn’t think they looked classy enough with her dress; a white dress that came to right above her knees and was sheer black on the top and sleeves. Then he told her how dangerous it was for a woman like her to be walking around town and he would have just picked her up if he’d known she was planning on walking. When Emma tried to interject that she worked in bail bonds and knew how to take care of herself, he went on a tirade about the criminal justice system, because owning an antique furniture store apparently made him not only a prick, but an expert in law as well.

And then Walsh insisted on showing Emma his boat. Now Emma had to admit she was intrigued. She loved the water and had always wanted to go sailing. She only knew one person with a boat and that was Ruby’s boyfriend’s brother, Killian. Emma had only met Killian a handful of times, not enough to ask to be invited onto his boat. She had seen it docked down at the marina, knew it was called the  _ Jolly Roger, _ and knew that he thought it was hilarious because he too had a hook for a hand just like the literary owner (though Killian’s was the mechanical kind that could grasp items and not one that was sharp and needed only for pirating). Oh, and Walsh was a big ol’ fat liar, because they were definitely standing in front of Killian’s J _ olly Roger  _ right now and not any boat belonging to Walsh.

“So you like Peter Pan then?” Emma said once she could actually get a word in edgewise (that was yet another mark in the ever expanding negative column, Walsh talked non-stop, and mainly about himself).

“What?” Walsh said, surprised that he’d been interrupted.

“Your boat. It’s called the  _ Jolly Roger _ . I just figured you were a big Peter Pan fan. Or, I guess, more a Captain Hook fan,” Emma said, stating the obvious.

“Well,” he started, as if he were giving a lecture and not talking to a date, “the  _ Jolly Roger _ is actually the name for the flag pirates flew on their ships with the skull and crossbones.”

“So you like pirates?” Emma asked, getting tired of this whole charade.

“Do you like pirates?” Walsh said taking a step forward. With any other guy it might have been a sexy move, with Walsh it was just creepy. Emma took a step back to distance herself from him. Walsh didn’t seem to notice, he kept creeping into her space.

“Hey, buddy, back up, please!” Emma said making her voice loud and firm so there was no way he could misunderstand the tone. She also put her hand out so he couldn’t come any closer.

“Oh, come on Emma,” he said with a sly smile that made him seem slimy and not seductive in the least. “I bought you a nice meal, we’ve had a nice conversation, you like my boat. We both know where this is heading.” Walsh fingered a piece of Emma’s hair and moved it to behind her shoulder. Emma’s skin crawled at that. She was going to kill Ruby, and she was going to do it slowly and torturously so she knew exactly how Emma was feeling right in this moment.

“I think the lady said to back off, mate.” A voice came from behind Walsh’s shoulder. Emma instantly relaxed. She recognized that accent. It belonged to the true owner of the boat, Killian.

But Walsh was not going to be deterred from whatever scenario he had concocted in his head about how this night was going to end.

“How about you back off?” he said, turning to Killian. “You’re not supposed to be here unless you own a boat.” His eyes flicked to Killian’s ragged looking jeans, white t-shirt, flannel shirt, flip flops, and messenger bag, instantly deeming him unworthy of possibly owning a boat on this dock. 

“True, true,” Killian said, his cerulean eyes immediately looking at Emma as if to say  _ ‘what is wrong with this idiot’ _ . 

“Well,” he paused for dramatic effect, “it’s a good thing I own this boat then.” Killian grinned swinging up the ladder. Walsh’s jaw dropped. He had obviously thought he’d get away with the boat ruse and had not expected the actual owner to show up and out him in front of his date. 

Walsh tried to recover. He grabbed Emma’s hand and mumbled, “Let’s go,” but Emma didn’t budge. She snatched her hand away.

“Do you really think I’m going to go anywhere with you after that stunt you just tried to pull?” Emma asked, incensed that he actually thought she would want to continue the date, especially since she’d already been asking him to back off before Killian interrupted.

Walsh looked pissed that his plans had been derailed and stomped off down the dock. Emma let out a sigh of relief. She really hadn’t wanted to kick his ass.

“Everything okay down there, Swan?” came Killian’s voice from the boat. He had a look of concern on his face.

“Just peachy,” Emma said, smoothing out her dress. She had two options: head home, get into comfy clothes and watch Netflix, or see if she could finally get onto Killian’s boat. 

“Permission to come aboard?” she asked, tilting her head and giving a lop-sided smile. Killian’s face went from concern to surprise at her request.

“Permission granted,” he said, coming over to the ladder and reaching out his hand to help her aboard. Emma was never more glad for wearing her comfortable booties than in that moment. 

Killian’s hand was warm when she placed hers in his. Emma scrambled up the ladder as gracefully as she could, but eventually just ended up clambering over the top of the boat in an effort to not show off what was underneath her dress. She straightened up once she was on the deck, pulling down her dress that had ridden up and trying to tame her blonde curls from the whole endeavor.

“Hi,” Emma said softly once she had righted herself.

“Hi,” Killian said, chuckling a bit. “You want to tell me what was with the wanker you were with down there?” he asked.

Emma blushed and then groaned. “Blame Ruby. Apparently because she’s so happy with your brother she feels the need to embrace her inner Mary Margaret and try to make everyone else happy as well. She set me up with that ‘wanker’.” She said doing a poor imitation of Killian’s accent. Killian raised an eyebrow.

“I would have thought Ruby had better taste than that, considering she’s dating my brother.” 

“Right?” Emma said, wondering how Ruby ever thought this date was a good idea. And then she asked curiously, “What are you doing out here at 10 o’clock on a Friday night? I’d think you’d be out with the guys or out with a girl or something.” She tried to sound casual about it. They’d only met a few times, but Emma had not failed to notice how good looking Killian was, what with his artfully looking bed head, neatly trimmed scruff, and piercingly blue eyes. He was also very considerate, always one to help out a friend when they were in a bind.

“Liam’s taking Ruby out on the boat tomorrow and needed some things set up, and since they are also out tonight, I offered to do it for him.” He scratched his hair right behind his ear, a cute nervous gesture that Emma had seen him do a few times. “Would you like to help since you’re here?” he asked scratching behind his ear. The bravado he’d had when getting rid of Walsh now seemed to be replaced with nerves. Was he nervous around her?

“Sure,” Emma said. She followed him down the ladder to the boat’s interior. 

“Let me give you the tour.” He grinned as she landed next to him. “This is the kitchen where I’m placing food for Liam and Ruby’s picnic date tomorrow.” Killian said pulling out some wine bottles from the messenger bag, placing the white in the fridge, and putting the red one in a wine rack built into the kitchen area. “There is the dinette table they will be eating at for their date,” He placed a piece of crusty bread on it, “the couch they will most likely be making out on, and the queen-sized bed that I’m sure they will take advantage of,” he finished, grabbing the last of the food from his bag (what looked like deli meats, cheeses, and fruit) and placing them on the kitchen counter. Emma gave a slight grimace, even though she knew it was probably all true.

“Looks like Liam’s got quite the date planned,” Emma said, “Why are you setting this up and not him?”

“Because Liam and Ruby are in a new relationship and can’t keep away from each other long enough for Liam to go to the store and set things up himself.” Killian rolled his eyes. “And, also, I’m a good brother and had nothing better to do tonight. And since it is my boat, I thought I’d be nice and make sure everything was in working order.” Emma nodded understanding. How many times had she helped out some of her girlfriends by doing the same thing? She was about to say as much when her stomach let out a huge grumble. Her cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

“Let me guess, Swan,” Killian stated, coming over to her. “Wanker took you to some high priced restaurant where you pay $50 for two slices of meat and they call that a steak dinner?” Emma laughed.

“It was three pieces, and a carrot cut in two halves, and a dollop of mashed potatoes with sour cream and chives drizzled artfully on top. I’m starving,” she said, smiling at him.

“Well, darling, take a seat and we can dig into some of this delicious food that Liam and Ruby were supposed to dine on tomorrow.” Killian immediately grabbed two plates from the kitchen cabinets, placing the items from the counter on therm, along with two wine glasses, and placed them on the dinette.

“But, then Ruby and Liam won’t have anything to eat.” Emma said now feeling awkward as Killian pulled out a chair for her. 

Killian grabbed the red wine and a corkscrew and opened the wine. He poured some into his own glass and then gestured to Emma’s. She nodded as he poured her some. “Being the wonderful younger brother that I am, I will replenish whatever stores we consume tonight. Besides, I can’t let you go hungry, that’s just bad form.” He held up his wine glass toward her. Emma brought hers up to clink with his.

“What a gentleman.”

“I’m always a gentleman, love.”

They made little sandwiches and Emma and Killian both playfully tried throwing grapes in each others mouths (try being the operative word, they both missed each others mouths spectacularly), while having one of the best get to know you conversations Emma had ever had in her life (“By the way, I really like your shoes,” he said at one point. “Thank you!”). 

“I’m sorry this is how our first dinner ended up happening,” he said smiling that killer smile. “I really would have rather asked you out properly instead of rescuing you from a bad date.”

“You thought about asking me out to dinner?” she asked. Killian’s eyebrows practically rose into his hair, his eyes wide with disbelief.

“Um… yes?” he said, now running his fingers through his hair, and Emma could see that he was worried he had overstepped. She almost laughed at how nervous he was. It was really sweet. Emma grabbed his hand and hook and took them in her own from across the table.

“Good,” she said, maintaining eye contact and smiling back at him. “I’ve thought about it too.” Killian let out a breath as if he’d been holding it, just waiting for her reaction. He rubbed his thumb along the back of her hand, drawing nonsensical patterns on it.

“Can I ask permission to call this our first date then, love?” The boldness in his voice was back. 

“Permission granted.”

**Author's Note:**

> This is the dress that Emma's dress is based off of.


End file.
